Researchers tested nanotube collisions at a variety of speeds. Most of the nanotubes survived the low-speed collisions, roughly 2.4 miles per second, and many survived the medium-speed collisions, roughly 3.2 miles per second.

Few survived the high-speed collisions at 4.3 miles per second. At the highest speeds, the majority split into nanoribbons and recombined to form new microstructures.